The government has decided to not take any action against Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra following her remarks against former Chief Justice of India (CJI) Ranjan Gogoi and the sexual harassment allegations pertaining to him.
According to media reports, the Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Prahlad Joshi had said on Wednesday, 8 February, that a privilege motion could be moved against Moitra for what she had said about ex CJI Gogoi.
HOW COME?
The idea was reportedly to take action against Moitra under a rule that forbids reflection by a member of the parliament on, “The conduct of persons in high authority unless the discussion is based on a substantive motion drawn in proper terms."
However, NDTV’s sources suggested that legal opinion said that a former CJI is not ‘higher’ authority and therefore Moitra had not, in fact, breached the rule.
WHAT HAD MOITRA SAID?
Moitra, according to The Wire, had refrained from naming Gogoi in her speech in the parliament, but had stated that the judiciary was no longer a ‘sacred cow’ from the day ‘when sitting chief justice of this country was accused of sexual harassment, presided over his own trial, cleared himself and then proceeded to accept a nomination to the Upper House of Parliament within three months of his retirement replete with Z plus security’.
Responding to reports of a possible breach of privilege motion being initiated against her, Moitra had also tweeted:
“It would be a privilege indeed if a breach of privilege motion is initiated against me for speaking the truth during India’s darkest hour.”
(With inputs from NDTV and The Wire.)
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